At tonight’s commission meeting, through three separate draft ordinances, staff rolled out the city’s plan for regulating medical marijuana. Ordinances covered zoning within city limits and in the extra-territorial area surrounding Pierre, as well as licensing.
Within city limits, the draft ordinance allows the city to license up to three medical marijuana dispensaries. None can be located within 1,000 feet of any school, public or private, accredited by the South Dakota Dept. of Education. Each can operate between the hours of 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. any day of the week.
The city will also allow one testing lab, one cultivation facility, and one manufacturing facility within city limits; the cultivation and manufacturing facilities can only be located in industrial zones.
“We have been working on this ordinance for months to find a good balance between access, safety, and security,” said City Finance Officer Twila Hight.
Each type of medical marijuana facility requires a $5,000 annual local application fee. Those eligible for a facility license must be at least 21, have no felony record, have never had a medical marijuana license revoked by the State of South Dakota, be in good standing with the city, and be licensed with the state.
Staff also spoke to the extra-territorial land surrounding Pierre. Working together with Hughes County, the two governments determined to disallow any sort of medical marijuana facilities within a three-mile buffer outside of city limits.
“We run into some jurisdictional issues in the extra-territorial,” said Hight. “The city and county both agree that it’s best to keep the facilities outside of that area.”
The zoning ordinance for medical marijuana establishments in city limits and the zoning ordinance for establishments in extra-territorial land will each have a second reading and a public hearing at the Aug. 31 Pierre City Commission meeting. The licensing ordinance will have its second reading at the Aug. 31 meeting as well.
To review the draft ordinances, visit cityofpierre.org.